'I've been silenced' – Gary Lineker missing from BBC coverage of Brighton vs Grimsby

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Gary Lineker will be absent from BBC's coverage of Brighton against Grimsby in the FA Cup on Sunday after losing his voice

Gary Lineker presents next to the FA Cup Gary Linekr presents alongside the FA Cup for Manchester City's semi-final against Liverpool at Wembley Stadium in April 2022.
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Gary Lineker will be missing from BBC's coverage of the FA Cup quarter-final between Brighton and Grimsby Town today after being 'silenced' again, albeit for a different reason this time.

Lineker was suspended by the BBC from presenting Match of the Day last weekend after comments he made on Twitter in which he criticised the government's policy on migrant boats.

He was promptly reinstated on Monday, but viewers of Saturday's quarter-final between Manchester City and Burnley will have noticed the 62-year-old was struggling with his voice.

"Due to illness, we've got a line-up change for today's live FA Cup coverage of Brighton v Grimsby on BBC One," the BBC said on Twitter.

"As viewers will have noticed yesterday, Gary Lineker was struggling with his voice and unfortunately it has deteriorated overnight. Alex Scott will be hosting instead."

Lineker also confirmed he would not be taking part.

"I've been silenced…. literally, by a nasty cold so, annoyingly, won’t be working at @OfficialBHAFC this afternoon," he wrote on Twitter.

Ben Hayward
Ben Hayward
Weekend editor

Ben Hayward is a European football writer and Tottenham Hotspur fan with over 15 years’ experience, he has covered games all over the world - including three World Cups, several Champions League finals, Euros, Copa America - and has spent much of that time in Spain. Ben speaks English and Spanish, currently dividing his time between Barcelona and London, covering all the big talking points of the weekend on FFT: he’s also written several list features and interviewed Guglielmo Vicario for the magazine.